Friday, May 24, 2013

Any Cake Worth Baking...

Gently, I tip-toed into the waters of cupcakery by baking and
constructing a two-tier cake for a church event. I don't think ‘gentle’ and ‘two-tiers’ go together - but, that's how it felt. Anyway, the reason for
attending?We were invited.Since, we’re rarely invited to anything, this was as good opportunity to
bake for someone else.With cake it’s
more than go big or go home – there is the occassional or fall down trying.

I had spent a couple days studying You Tube videos of cake
decorating tutorials.Some are
just goofy and others teach to my style of learning.Bottom line: I needed some cake decorating
basics, e.g. a turntable, an off-set spatula, cake boards, piping bags, and
tips. [Full disclosure: I snicker every time I
say “piping bag” since “pipe” and “bag” mean altogether something different for
an addictions counselor.Aaaaand I’m still
gigglin’ on the inside].

Life Partners, March 2013﻿

Courtesy of Amazon and my Life Partner, the much-needed
stuff arrived in our mailbox.And
because it seemed like a good idea, I made a practice cake before the actual
cake event.I love when I’m in the Test
Kitchen…I’m free to make mistakes without fear of judgment.Here’s where baking-as-therapy started
switching on some of my light bulbs of understanding. I still learn everyday when I'm baking. Still. Whew.

The test cake was a Duncan Hines Devil’s Food box mix 8” two-layer
base with a Red Velvet 6” two-layer top tier.I gave the test cake to my husband for Valentine’s Day (I'm just good like that).Because it had gone so well, I was ready for
the event cake.This is when I decided to
try cake from scratch ingredients (hot
tip: when trying a new cake recipe for an event, I tend to hold back enough
batter for a cupcake or two in order to taste the cake prior to cutting and
serving).Our youngest daughter took one
bite and said, “Never make another box mix again!”Ok, gotcha.

I liked the lattice work and this was a first attempt at piping. hehehe

Bless'r heart. That's all I want to say to myself.

I'm not convinced three flavors of frosting go together on one cake.

The test kitchen was successful! With the chocolate cake and peanut butter frosting base and
red velvet and cream cheese frosting top, I got busy decorating the event cake.I had some help with deciding on the cake
topper and I think it turned out great.

As big as my kitchen is, by German standards, it gets crazy-crowded in the middle of a project. And please notice the store-bought frosting on the counter...I hadn't yet learned I could make my own icing! Literally, I started at the very beginning of cupcake discovery.

The last name of the family being celebrated begins with the letter "S." The colors made me think of a baby shower cake. Noone said anything but kind words to me. I wonder if I'm too hard on myself...probably.

What a lovely table!

Looking at these photos today, I can see so many things that
needed improvement.What I remember is
the feeling of great accomplishment
and how the guests at the event responded to its look and taste. The cake disappeared in 12 minutes flat! People stood in line to be served a piece of the "American" cake. That was sweet.I felt encouraged to keep at it.